The techniques disclosed herein relate to vehicle sunroof apparatuses including a front panel and a rear panel configured to close an opening in a fixed roof. In particular, the techniques relate to a vehicle sunroof apparatus configured such that at least one of the front panel or the rear panel is retractable and the opening of the fixed roof is closed with an edge portion of the front panel being in contact with an edge portion of the rear panel.
A vehicle sunroof apparatus including a front panel and a rear panel which are configured to close an opening in a fixed roof with an edge portion of the font panel and an edge portion of the rear panel facing and contacting each other is known from Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2004-114924 (Patent Document 1). This patent document discloses a configuration in which the opening is closed with weatherstrips of the panels being in contact with each other. The weatherstrip of the front panel has a hollow structure whereas the weatherstrip of the rear panel has a solid structure, thereby enhancing sealing between the weatherstrips. In this specification, unless otherwise specified, the term “hollow” means a “hollow structure,” and not a “hollow material.” Likewise, the term “solid” means a “solid structure,” and not a “solid material.”
Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2010-095129 (Patent Document 2) discloses a sunroof apparatus configured such that an opening in a fixed roof is closed with an edge portion of a front panel being in contact with an edge portion of a rear panel. In this sunroof apparatus, the edge portion of the front panel is provided with a hollow weatherstrip and the edge portion of the rear panel is provided with a solid frame. The weatherstrip and the frame are caused to contact each other when the opening in the fixed roof is closed.